Guangzhou: The Indian men spikers, who have been punching above their weight unlike many of their compatriots in the Asian Games here, continued to impress with a stunning 3-2 victory over formidable Japan in the Group-F 1-8 placement match at the Zhongda Gymnasium on Friday.
Spearheaded by Pradeep Guttikonda's excellent all-round display in offence as well as defence, India chalked out a hard-fought 3-2 victory over their rivals in a pulsating match that lasted close to two hours.
Pradeep emerged as the top-scorer for India with 16 points and was ably supported in spiking by Sube Singh and Sanjay Banwari and net blocking by Mohan Ukkarapandian and Banwari.
Sube Singh, Banwari and Geroge Vibin took good control of the service department as India won 25-20, 25-19, 21-25, 26-28, 15-13.
Head coach G Sridharan described the Indian display as the best-ever in his time.
"Yes. This is the best game we have ever won. It is a surprise win that we did not expect before the match. We have not beaten Japan for a long, long time," he said.
Sridharan said his team was better in defence which proved crucial in the end.
"I think they did very well in blocking. Japan is a very strong team. But we played better in defence," he explained.
Sube Singh also said he and his teammates excelled in defence.
"We focused on blocking and powerful serves. It is one of our best efforts. It is the first time we have beaten Japan," he said.
"We are very tall, that is why we are good in defence," he added.
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